In the second half of 2012, the number of cellular machine-to-machine (M2M) connections reported by China Mobile had increased by nearly 5.5 million. That’s as many as the UK had in total at the end of last year. This outstanding growth has helped to propel China forward to become the single largest national market in terms of connections, having now overtaken the US.

85.2 percent of the U.S. Internet audience viewed online video, according to the latest  comScore Video Metrix service showing that 183 million Americans watched more than 44 billion online content videos in June, while the number of video ad views surpassed 20 billion.

The duration of the average online content video was 5.3 minutes, while the average online video ad was 0.4 minutes. Video ads accounted for 31 percent of all videos viewed and 3 percent of all minutes spent viewing video online.

Top 10 Video Content Properties by Unique Viewers

Military expenditure faces challenges with declining budgets impacting the introduction of new platforms, but technology will be the differentiator providing opportunities for RF technologies. The Advanced Defense Systems (ADS) service report, "Defense Market Opportunities for RF Technologies" forecasts that the market for RF technologies will remain strong as the focus shifts towards enhancing capabilities in areas such as radar, satellite communications and electronic warfare.

Despite the pay-TV industry’s increasing focus on delivering services to alternative devices like PCs, smartphones and tablets, its traditional flagship platform-- the set-top box (STB)—continues to thrive, with market shipments set to hit record highs in 2013, 2014 and 2015, according to the latest IHS Set-Top Box Monitor report.

The pay-TV market in India is expected to reach 167 million subscribers in 2017 from 140 million in 2012, showing a 3.6% CAGR during this period, according to a new report by Multimedia Research Group (MRG). DTH, alone, is expected to reach 100 million subscribers by 2017. Following digitization, it will surpass cable TV penetration, which comprised 67% of the pay-TV market share in 2012.

The IPTV subscriber base, however, is expected to remain negligible owing to unfavorable government norms and regulations.

According to Euroconsult's newly released research report,Company Profiles: Analysis of FSS Operators, 86% of all 37 active commercial FSS operators saw revenue growth in 2012, with 13 operators reaching 10% or more. However, approximately half of the operators experienced slower revenue growth than the previous year.

Innovation is critical to telco survival, finds Ovum. Yet many operators miss the big picture, exaggerate the threat from over-the-top (OTT) players, and misunderstand the broader benefits of innovation. New research from the global analyst firm examined more than 3,500 new service launches since 2009, finding that telcos must compete less and collaborate more.

A new study by Juniper Research investigating the Mobile TV & Video market has found that by 2017, revenues from streaming and download services on mobile and tablet devices will reach US$ 9.5 billion, up from US$ 4.5bn this year. This will be as a result of the maturation of the market for streaming subscription services and pay-per-title content, which will see new business models develop for smartphone and tablet users.

Personalization & A Multi-Screen Ecosystem

NSR’s 6th installation of Global Direct-to-Home (DTH) Markets, analyzes a rapidly changing industry that is diverging from one with growth centered around North America and Western Europe to one where growth will come from the developing parts of the world.

The number of pay TV households (analog and digital) reached 772 million by  2012, up from 585 million in 2008, according to a new report from Digital TV Research. Asia Pacific increased by 126 million – or two-thirds of the global  additions - during this period to bring its total to 433 million. North America (112 million) was the second largest region, although it only added 4 million.